John E. O'Grady.
Co-Pilot · 409th Squadron · Of Frankfort, NY.
The Man Behind the Name
Flew to England July 1943 on the unescorted Queen Elizabeth; assigned as Pilot of Crew #15, 93rd Bomb Group, 409th Sqdn. Crew #15 was rushed to Libya via ATC and placed on Detached Service with 345th Sqdn., 98th Bomb Group at Benghazi. On Aug. 1, 1943 (Ploesti mission), flew as co-pilot with pilot Lt. Blevins in Snake Eyes. Colonel Kane led the mission. Crippled by flak, Snake Eyes was forced to land at an RAF fighter strip in Syracuse, Sicily after a 13-hour-24-minute mission; a flat tire and no flaps caused the plane to pile up on a stone wall. All participants received the Distinguished Flying Cross. Returned to England; reported to 93rd Bomb Group, 409th Sqdn. and finished his 28th mission in April 1944.
Service record.
Missions flown.
The missions below are those we have been able to document for this airman, drawn from flight logs, mission records, and archival sources. It is not necessarily a complete account of every mission flown; gaps may reflect missing documentation, transferred assignments, or records lost to time.
Before and after.
Born May 19, 1919 in Frankfort, NY. Enlisted Dec. 10, 1940. Went to Oahu, TH April 1941; served in Co. A, 3rd Engineers at Schofield Barracks. Applied for Air Corps pilot training. Pilot training Class 43-A at Santa Ana, Hemet, Bakersfield, and Roswell. Appointed Flight Officer. B-24 training at Davis Monthan and Biggs Field.
After completing missions, served with 448th Bomb Group as training officer under Col. Gerry Mason; flew one additional mission (29th) to France after D-Day. Returned to States to instruct at Liberal, KS. Opted out on points July 1945. Married Jean in 1951; worked as industrial photographer. Earned BA in education (Syracuse University) and MA (State University, Albany, NY). Coordinator of social studies at South Colonie School System. Retired 1980. Amateur radio operator (ham) N2DGE, QTH Schenectady, NY. Visited Ploesti, Romania on Aug. 1, 1993, stood at the final IP, Floresti, 50 years later.